(ISC)2 Opens Nominations for Gov’t Information Security Awards

(ISC)2 (“ISC-squared”), a nonprofit global provider of education and certification for information security professionals throughout their careers, announced it has opened nominations for its fifth annual Government Information Security Leadership Awards (GISLA).

The 2008 GISLA Program, marked this year by its five-year anniversary milestone, was established as part of (ISC)2's effort to recognize the ongoing commitment by federal information security leaders to build a highly qualified and ethical workforce. This year, in an effort to consider the achievements of an increasingly blended workforce, the award program has been expanded to include a fourth award category for the recognition of federal contractor personnel.

The three government employee categories from previous years will remain. They include Senior Non-IT Security Managers, Senior IT Security Managers and Non-Managerial IT Security Professionals who have significantly contributed to the enhancement of the IT security workforce by demonstrating a leadership role in any IT security workforce improvement initiative, program or project.

The new Federal Contractor IT Security Professional award designation recognizes an individual who has made significant contributions to the enhancement of the IT security workforce while supporting a federal government program. Nominations for this award must be submitted by a federal employee who is a co-contributor to or supervisor of the same program or initiative for which the candidate is being nominated.

“The contractor community has played a vital role in further strengthening the federal IT security workforce. I believe that as our threat environment increases in complexity, we will rely even more on contractors for their specialized expertise, technical skill sets and ability to implement industry best practices in the government enterprise environment,” said Lynn McNulty, CISSP, director of government affairs for (ISC)2 and co-chair for the (ISC)2 U.S. Government Advisory Board (GAB).

“For the last four years, (ISC)2 has recognized federal employees that represent the best in their field. Now with the expansion of the GISLA program to include contractors, we feel that all who have contributed to the improvement of the workforce will have the opportunity to be recognized.”

A nominations committee comprised of members from the GAB will review and select winners from the four groups of finalists based upon the selection criteria and eligibility requirements. The GAB includes volunteer, senior-level information security professionals responsible for counseling (ISC)2 on policies, trends and certifications within the public sector.

(ISC)2 officials, along with media sponsor 1105 Government Information Group, will honor the GISLA winners on Oct. 7, during an evening dinner ceremony at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Va.

The deadline to nominate a federal executive or information security professional is July 25.